Vlasta Kálalová

Vlasta Kálalová Di Lotti (26 October 1896 – 15 February 1971) was a Czech physician interested in tropical diseases and entomology.

After attending a lecture on exotic parasitology given by professor Jaroslav Hlava, she became interested in tropical diseases and their treatment.

Her entire family was wiped out by accidental shooting from German troops on 8 May 1945, at the very moment when the Czechs were being finally liberated.

Additional reports show that her husband and children were killed by the Nazi first in front of her eyes as a form of punishment.

Under the Communist regime, Kálalová strongly protested against the death sentence for Milada Horáková who was executed on charges of conspiracy and treason in 1950.

She was fluent in fourteen foreign languages: in English, French, German, Russian, Italian, Spanish, Turkish, Arabic, Persian, Norwegian, Icelandic, modern Greek, Tajik and Georgian.